The actor-filmmaker jotted down his feelings about the ghastly rape and torture of a young woman in Delhi, saying the culprits should be treated as terrorists

Farhan Akhtar could not control feelings of deep sadness at the brutal gang-rape and attempted murder of a 23-year-old medical student in Delhi. The Bhaag Milkha Bhaag actor and B-town producer expressed his anguish through a poem that he shared on Twitter this morning.

Farhan wrote:

What is this country that I live in?

With no equality

And the quality of life

Differs from husband to wife

Boy to girl, brother to sister

Hey Mister, are you the same?

Contributing to the national shame

Replacing your mothers

With the bent ideology of another’s

perception that women have a particular role in society

Fills my heart with anxiety

Where is all of this going?

What will emerge from these seeds that we’re sowing?

It makes my head spin

But I’m not giving in

Will keep asking the question

What is this country that I live in?

What is this country that I live in?

That takes away her right to love

Brutalises her with an iron glove

Rapes her without fear

of there being justice for her tear

We’ve demeaned our goddesses

Gone back on all our promises

Become a gender distorted nation

Given our conscience a permanent vacation

what do I tell my daughter?

That she’s growing up to be lamb for the slaughter

we’ve got to make a change

Reboot, reformat, rearrange,

and never give in

no matter how much our head may spin

Just keep asking the question

What is this country that I live in?

Here to help. Love. Farhan.

He also tweeted yesterday, saying: “Yes we can stoop lower as a people. The Delhi bus gang rape is proof of that. Is justice asleep? I believe swift and severe punishment is the only deterrent. These deviants are not afraid of consequence as it comes too little too late. Everything has a tipping point and r nation just crossed it with the Delhi gangrape case. we demand a new, faster system of justice 4 Rape. The guilty should be treated as terrorists. Just because they target one woman and not a nation, doesn’t mean that’s not their crime.”